Which Miles & Points Should You Collect for Award Flights?

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Million Mile Secrets reader Alex writes:

I was wondering if you can give me advice on choosing the right credit card. I already have a Miles & More (Lufthansa) account and ~30,000 miles or so in there.

I’m located in Miami and I try to stick to Lufthansa or Star Alliance partners as my preferred airlines. I fly at least 2 times a year to Europe or Asia but also make some trips within the US.

And knowing which airlines serve your home airport will help a great deal in making a decision!

Figuring out Which Miles & Points to Collect Doesn’t Have to Be Hard! I’ll Show You How to Choose

I’ll give you tips for how to decide which cards to apply for, depending on your home airport, airline preferences, and travel goals!

1. Where Are You?

One of the biggest factors in deciding which miles and points to collect is your home airport.

It doesn’t make sense to sign-up for cards which earn miles with an airline or alliance that doesn’t fly to an airport near you! And some folks in small cities might only have 1 or 2 airlines to choose from.

Flying From a Smaller Airport? It’s Important to Check Which Airlines and Alliances Operate Flights There!

That said, if you live in an area served by multiple airports (like New York City or Washington, DC), you’ll have far more flexibility in redeeming your miles & points for flights!

Options Within the US and to Europe & Asia

It’s interesting that Alex prefers Star Alliance airlines, because Miami Airport is actually an American Airlines (oneworld) hub! He may have more award flight options using American Airlines or other oneworld airline miles, depending on where he wants to travel.

And my favorite airline for domestic travel, Southwest, does NOT fly to Miami. But they do fly to Fort Lauderdale (~1 hour drive north).

For domestic flights, it makes most sense for Alex to focus on earning United Airlines miles. Because he can also use them for international flights on Lufthansa and other Star Alliance partners.

To Europe and Asia, he can use United Airlines miles to fly from Miami on not only United Airlines itself, but Star Alliance partners Air Canada, Austrian Airlines, Singapore Airlines, SWISS, and TAP Portugal. Or connect to another US city on United Airlines and continue on any other Star Alliance partner.

Transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards Points to United Airlines and Other Partners When You Have the Right Cards!

These cards will give Alex the most flexibility. He can transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to United Airlines for flights on United Airlines, Lufthansa, and other Star Alliance partners.

Or if he decides he’d like to try out American Airlines service from Miami, he can transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to British Airways to book American Airlines (or other oneworld airline) award flights.

He could even consider transferring to Southwest if he doesn’t mind getting to Fort Lauderdale airport. Southwest often has the cheapest award tickets for domestic flights, everyone gets 2 free checked bags, and there are never change or cancellation fees. So it might be worth it for Alex!

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One response to “Which Miles & Points Should You Collect for Award Flights?”

We have 2 Southwest offers (mail) a Premier Business for 60K points and a Premier for 50K points. Can you say with any certainty that the combined 110K points will qualify and be applied to the SWA Companion Pass ?

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